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Chapter Nine: Retention
ChapteR nine RETENTION
Because career progression depends on the ability to retain as well as promote servicemembers, it is important to examine whether there are demographic differences in who chooses to remain in and who chooses to separate from military service. It is also important to identify potential barriers that influence demographic differences in retention.
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To calculate the retention behavior of different demographic groups for the AC, the Commission accessed records from FY 2000–FY 2008 from the Proxy Personnel Tempo files provided by DMDC and from information provided separately by the Coast Guard. For the RC, the Commission accessed records from FY 2004–FY 2009 from the Reserve Component Common Personnel Data System files provided by DMDC.1 For the AC, the Commission calculated reenlistment rates based on those servicemembers who were eligible (i.e., who had completed at least 17 months of service) both to voluntarily leave active-duty service and to reenlist. Officer retention was based on continuation rates of officers, which are calculated as the percentage of officers in the same Service observed at year t and again at year t + 1.2 For the RC, retention for both enlisted servicemembers and officers was calculated based on continuation rates.
Retention of Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Active Component Retention
Among AC enlisted servicemembers, the reenlistment rates of non-Hispanic blacks, Hispanics, and non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islanders were higher than those of whites and members of other races or ethnicities (i.e., American Indians, Alaska Natives,
1 The data focus specifically on the Selected Reserve. 2 These continuation rates do not distinguish between voluntary and involuntary separation. Differences in personnel management in the enlisted and officer communities led the Commission to focus on reenlistment rates among active-duty enlisted servicemembers and on continuation rates among active-duty officers. Enlisted servicemembers enlist for a set period of time and, after the completion of that term of service, must decide either to leave or to reenlist for another term. If the servicemember chooses to stay, another stay/leave decision must be made at the end of the second service obligation, and so on. Therefore, retention behavior among enlisted servicemembers can be studied at the time of a decision point using reenlistment rates. In contrast, officers are free to leave active-duty service at any point after an initial obligation period and do not have to make specific recommitment decisions at any particular point. Therefore, retention behavior among officers is usually measured through continuation rates.
and individuals of more than one race). This pattern was consistent across all Services. However, the gap in reenlistment rates shrank as time in service increased.
For AC officers, on average, non-Hispanic black and Hispanic officers had cumulative continuation rates that were greater than or equal to whites’ rates at every yearof-service point. Specifically, after the fourth year of service, non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics had consistently higher rates of continuation than both whites and members of other racial/ethnicity minority groups. Until 20 years of service, when differences in retention begin to taper, the differences between non-Hispanic blacks, Hispanics, and whites became more pronounced as years of service increased. The one exception to this trend is found in the Air Force, where non-Hispanic blacks consistently had lower continuation rates than whites until year 20, at which point the gap began to close. The retention rates for other racial/ethnic minority officer groups are more complicated because the rates varied according to Service. On average, the rates of non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islanders and members of other minority races/ethnicities (i.e., American Indians, Alaska Natives, and individuals of more than one race) were less than or equal to the rates of whites. Thus, for both the AC enlisted and AC officer corps, racial/ ethnic minorities were, overall, more than or equally as likely as whites to remain in service.
Reserve Component Retention
Among RC enlisted servicemembers, average continuation rates varied somewhat across Service components and years of service. However, overall, non-Hispanic Asian/ Pacific Islanders and Hispanics had higher average continuation rates than whites. On the other hand, non-Hispanic blacks and, in some Services, members of other minority races/ethnicities (i.e., American Indians, Alaska Natives, individuals of more than one race, and those of unknown race) had significantly lower average continuation rates than whites. However, the lower continuation rates of non-Hispanic blacks and members of other minority races/ethnicities (i.e., American Indians, Alaska Natives, individuals of more than one race, and those of unknown race) were small, ranging from only a 1- to 4-percentage–point difference.
Among officers in the RC, average continuation rates also varied somewhat across Service components and years of service. Overall, though, the continuation rates of racial/ethnic minorities were higher than or the same as the rates of whites. The only exceptions to this pattern were non-Hispanic blacks in the Air Force Reserve, the Marine Corps Reserve, and the Navy Reserve and non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islanders in the Coast Guard Reserve. Again, these differences in promotion rates were relatively small, ranging from only a 1- to 4-percentage–point difference.
Retention of women
Active Component Retention
Examining retention among AC enlisted servicemembers, the Commission found that, across the Services, women were less likely than men to remain in service. There
are two notable exceptions: In the Air Force, women’s reenlistment rates early on in their careers (between 17 months and six years of active service) were higher than men’s during the mid-2000s. Similarly, men and women had very comparable reenlistment rates earlier on in their careers in the Marine Corps.
Similarly, female officers across the Services were less likely to be retained than male officers. During the first three years of service as an officer, men and women displayed similar continuation rates. However, by the time officers had completed their fourth year of service, differences between male and female continuation rates began to emerge and to increase with years of service through roughly years 8 to 12. By the tenth year of service, the percentage-point difference between male and female officer cumulative continuation rates was 10 in the Army, 15 in the Navy, and 20 in both the Marine Corps and Air Force. In other words, although both male and female officers separated from the military as years of service increased, female officers separated at higher rates during the period under consideration. This difference in later years is likely the result of retention rather than promotion because it occurs before the first competitive promotion point. However, after 20 years of service, the gender gap begins to narrow again, with a difference of less than 5 percentage points by 30 years of service. Thus, overall for both the AC enlisted and officer corps, women were less likely than men to remain in service.
Reserve Component Retention
Women enlisted in the RC, no matter what the Service, were less likely than men to remain in service. Furthermore, continuation rates for women generally remained below those of their male counterparts across years of service, with only some increase in retention past 20 years of service.3
As in the case of enlisted trends, data on RC officer continuation rates show that, across all the Services, women were less likely than men to remain in service. In general, female continuation rates were lower than male rates until roughly ten years of service. Female continuation rates then rose above those of their male counterparts between ten and 20 years of service and then dropped back down below the rates of men after 20 years of service. Thus, overall, for both the RC enlisted and RC officer corps, women were less likely than men to remain in service.
Although there were small differences in the retention rates of racial/ethnic minorities compared with those of whites, particularly in the RC, the largest gap in retention rates was between men and women. To explore why this gender gap in retention exists, the Commission examined potential differences in servicemembers’ attitudes toward military life. Using data from the DMDC’s November 2008 SOFS (found at Defense
3 RC servicemembers may have had prior service time in the AC before joining the RC. Therefore, the Commission uses the Years of Service Pay Entry Base Date as a measure of years of service rather than years of service in the RC. This Years of Service Pay Entry Base Date metric measures years of service from the time a servicemember first joins the Armed Forces.
Manpower Data Center, 2010c), the Commission assessed whether there were gender differences in satisfaction with military life, organizational commitment, and retention intentions.4
In the AC, female enlisted servicemembers were as likely as their male counterparts in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps both to be satisfied with the military way of life and to report that they intended to remain in the Armed Forces. Similarly, in the AC Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy, female officers were as likely as their male counterparts both to be satisfied with the military way of life and to report that they intended to remain in the Armed Forces. There was an exception in the case of female Army officers, who, compared with their male counterparts, reported being less satisfied with the military and less likely to stay. Consistent with the AC, female servicemembers in the RC were as likely as their male counterparts to report that they were satisfied with the military way of life and that they intended to remain in the Armed Forces.
However, the results also showed that AC enlisted female soldiers and sailors were less likely than their male counterparts to report that they saw the military as a career. Similarly, across all four DoD Services, female AC officers were less likely than their male counterparts to report that they saw the military as a career. The Commission did not have data on RC servicemember attitudes toward a military career.
Finally, through the DEOCS, the Commission gathered additional AC data on potential reasons for leaving military service.5 Overall, the results from the DEOCS suggest that men and women cited similar reasons for leaving active duty. Both genders reported dissatisfaction with their job, low pay, and lack of promotion or advancement opportunities as reasons for leaving. For male officers, the most frequently cited
4 The AC sample consisted of 37,494 servicemembers of the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, and Navy who had completed at least six months of service and were below flag/general officer rank six months prior to data collection. A total of 10,435 eligible servicemembers returned usable surveys (3,474 officers, 6,303 enlisted servicemembers, and 658 warrant officers). The RC sample included responses from the Army National Guard, the Army Reserve, the Navy Reserve, the Marine Corps Reserve, the Air National Guard, and the Air Force Reserve. The Coast Guard does not participate in the SOFS. 5 Survey data were collected in two periods during February–March and May 2010. Although a total of 3,419 servicemembers completed the survey during this period, the Commission focused its attention on the 1,111 AC officers and enlisted servicemembers who reported that they either were leaving at the end of their current obligation (n = 592) or were not sure whether they were leaving at the end of their current obligation (n = 519) and whose responses were not missing data on race/ethnicity, gender, branch of Service, or rank.
Just over half of the servicemembers in the analytic sample were in the Army (616), and roughly one-third were in the Navy (315). The rest were spread throughout the Marine Corps (87), Coast Guard (70), and Air Force (23). The distribution of respondents across Services reflects differences in how each of the Services uses the DEOCS. The DEOCS is typically not used by the Air Force, which relies on its own internal climate survey. Therefore, it is likely that the Air Force respondents in the sample were in a cross-Service command. In the Navy and Marine Corps, unit participation in the DEOCS is required within 90 days of a new commander taking command and every year thereafter. The Army has its own climate survey that must be administered to units within 90 days of a new commander taking command, but the DEOCS is also available to commanders who choose to use it. The Coast Guard requires administration of the DEOCS to each unit annually, as long as the unit contains at least 16 servicemembers. In general, DEOMI does not generate a DEOCS report unless at least 16 assigned personnel complete the survey.
reason for leaving was failure to be promoted. Although there were fewer female officer responses to analyze, the high frequency of deployments and the desire to settle in one location were both listed as primary motivations for separating. Among male enlisted servicemembers, low pay and low allowances was the most frequently cited reason for leaving; among female enlisted servicemembers, involuntary separation or ineligibility to reenlist was the most frequently cited reason. Overall, however, none of the data points to a single reason or single set of reasons that can explain why women haven chosen to leave military service at higher rates than men.
Recommendation 12—
Where appropriate, DACOWITS should expand its current focus on retention to include an explanation of the gender gap in retention. As part of this renewed focus, DACOWITS should examine the effects of retention programs, such as the sabbatical programs currently offered by the Navy and the Coast Guard as well as any other innovative Service-specific approaches to retention. Findings and recommendations from this research should be presented to the Secretary of Defense.
Because the data do not clearly indicate why more women leave service earlier and at greater rates than men, the Commission recommends that the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACOWITS) expand its current focus on retention to examine the gender gap in retention. This examination should also explore why women are less likely to view the military as a career and should help to identify existing policies and practices that may effectively decrease the retention gap between men and women.
The Commission also suggests that DACOWITS examine the effectiveness of a number of sabbatical programs. All the Services currently offer a number of these programs to enhance retention among their servicemembers. However, because the law prohibits the award of benefits to individuals solely based on gender, designing retention programs specifically aimed at women is challenging. Thus, retention outcomes related to three potentially effective, and legal, sabbatical programs should be more fully explored.
In FY 2009, the Navy began to conduct a pilot program, the Career Intermission Pilot Program, to encourage retention through enhanced career flexibility. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 allows 20 officers and 20 enlisted members in each Service to participate in the program each year. The program, which is open to both men and women, allows officers and enlisted personnel to temporarily (for up to three years) take time off from active duty. Participants in the program transition from the AC to the Individual Ready Reserve during this period. Although those who participate in a career intermission do not receive active-duty pay or allowances, they do retain medical and dental care benefits and continued access to
commissaries, exchanges, and Morale, Welfare, and Recreation programs. Servicemembers incur an additional active-duty service obligation of two months for every month of participation in this career intermission. Upon their return to active duty, participants return at the same rank they held upon entering the program.
The Coast Guard has two sabbatical programs worthy of exploring. The first, Care for Newborn Children, and the second, Temporary Separation Program, are restricted to individuals who are at the rank of E-4/O-3 or above. To qualify for Care for Newborn Children, at least four years of active-duty service in the Coast Guard are required; six years are required to qualify for the Temporary Separation Program. Both programs allow for up to a 24-month absence, and the servicemember receives no pay or benefits while away. Upon return, individuals are reinstated at the same rank they held upon leaving, assuming that they meet physical fitness requirements and return within two years. Servicemembers may take advantage of one sabbatical, but not both.
The Commission suggests that DACOWITS examine the available data on these leave programs as well as other innovative Service programs and assess the effect of their expansion on female retention. The Commission also recommends that DACOWITS disseminate the findings and recommendations from its review to a wide audience, including the Secretary of Defense. This can help facilitate the use of successful retention practices that close the gender gap across Services.
